Rail joint



R. E. OSBORNE RAIL JOINT Filed Sept. 21. 1921 J www March 25;, 1924.

Patented Mar. 25, 1924.

ROBERT EFOSBORNE, 0F HAMBURG, NEW YORK.

RAIL JOINT.

Application filed September 21, 1921. Serial No. 502,183.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ROBERT E. O'sBoRNn,

a citizen of the United States, residing at Hamburg, in the county of Erie, State of New York, have invented a new and useful Rail Joint; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

The invention relates to rail joints, and has for its object to provide a device of this character which is economical and efficient and comprises means for joining or splicing the ends of all types of rails, frogs, points, switches, crossings, and such other railway and railroad tra'ck equipment on which wheels turn, said joint being so constructed as to produce a continuous and silent rail.

The advantage of such a joint is to eliminate low joints and dispense with the clicking and noise caused by wheels passing over joints now used, and also to produce a tight and rigid joint, at the same time allowing for contraction and expansion of the tracks.

A further object is to provide a rail joint formed by cutting the ends of rails and equipment at a suitable angle or bevel diagonally across said rails or equipment and splicing or joining the same with specially constructed splice bars and bolts, which have locking features.

With the above and other objects in view the invention resides in the combination and arrangement of parts as hereinafter set forth, shown in the drawings, described and claimed, it being understood that changes in the precise embodiment of the invention may be made within the scope of what is claimed without departing from the spirit of the invention.

In the drawings Figure 1 is a top plan view of the rail joint.

Figure 2 is a side elevation of the rail joint.

Figure 3 is a vertical transverse sectional view through one of the rails and the fish plates, showing the holding bolt.

Figure 4 is a plan view of the adjacent ends of the rails, showing their diagonally I extending faces.

Referring to the drawings, the numerals 1 and 2 designate the adjacent ends of rails, which ails have their ends 3 and 4: transversely bevelled as clearly shown in Figures 1 and 41, thereby providing a continuous flush wheel support at the joint where the wheels of the train pass from the tread 5. of the rail 1 to the tread 6 of the rail 2. The bevelled ends 3'and 4 are spaced from each other a sufiicient distance to allow expansion of the rails incident to heat. However, they are close enough together to prevent, upon contraction of the rails, the ends of the rails from moving too far apart whereby the continuous tread feature for the wheels of the car train will be maintained. The adjacent ends of the rails 1 and 2 are disposed on a base plate 7, which base plate may be secured to railroad ties by means of spikes which may be driven through the apertures 8 adjacent one side of the plate 7. The plate 7 is provided with an upwardly extending fish plate 9, preferably integrally formed with the plate 7, which plate engages the webs 10 of the rails and beneath the treads of the rails as at 11. The plate 7 adjacent its edge 12 is provided with an upwardly extending flange 13, which flange is engaged by the edge 14: of a fish plate 15. Fish plate 15 has its under side provided with a shoulder 16, which shoulder engages the edge 17 of the flange 18 of the rails, and holds the flanges 19 of the rails in close engagement with the recesses 20 formed by the fish plate 9 and the rail supporting plate 7 The fish plate 15 is held securely in position by means of bolts 21, which bolts pass through onlarged apertures 22 in the fish plates 15 and 9 and through enlarged apertures 23 in the webs 10 of the rails l and 2. By providing enlarged apertures 22 and 23, it will be seen that the rails will be allowed to expand and contract when there is a change upwardly or downwardly of temperature, thereby preventing shearing of bolts and varying of track gage, especially on curves. The bolts 2] are provided with nuts 24, by means of which nuts the fish plates are held securely in place. The fish plate 15 is provided with apertures 25 which register with apertures 26 in the base plate 7 and through which registering apertures conventional forms of spikes may be driven for securing the device as a whole to a cross tie or the like.

To prevent the nuts 21 which are threaded on the bolts 21 from retrograde movement incident to jar wedges 27 are provided,

which Wedges engage the under sides of the nuts and are provided with longitudinally disposed convexed under faces 28 which engage in a concave channel 29 carried by the fish plate 15 and disposed beneath the nut 24. It will be seen that by providing the concaved channel that the wedges will be prevented from working outwardly and that a jamming surface is also provided for the wedges 27. The base plate 7 at a point centrally thereof and in registration with the ends of the rails l and 2 is providedwith an aperture 30, through which water which may accurnmulate between the adjacent ends of the rails will flow and be discharged.

From the above it will be seen that a rail joint is provided which is simple in con struction and one wherein a continuous rail is obtained by cutting the rail at registering angles and one wherein the fish plates and base plate are simple in construction and the securing means for said fish plates and base to a cross tie so positioned that they will render the maximum holding force-under end thrust. It will also be seen that efiicient locking means is provided for the nuts 2%, thereby obviating the present difficulty experienced where the nuts gradually creep in a retrograde direction incident to vibration as a train passes over the rail.

posed plate underlying. and engaging the under side of the rail and extending beyond the opposite side of the rail, the outer end of said horizontally disposed plate terminating in a vertically disposed flange having its inner side in a. vertical plane and in parallel relation to the rail a fish plate engaging the other side of the rail and having its outer edge in abutting engagement with the inner side of the flange and disposed between said flange and the adjacent side of the rail, a longitudinally disposed rib carried by the last named fish plate, bolts extending through the fish plates and rail above said rib and wedge shaped members wedged between the rib and the nuts ot the bolts for holding said nuts againstrotation. i

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

" ROBERT E. OSBORNE;

Witnesses GEORGE SoHRonnnR, ELIZABETH SoHRoEDnR. 

